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The Weekend, The Book and Other Things

Saturday was hotter in London, Ontario than it was in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.  Dubai, that over-populated, but-it’s-a-dry-heat, desert playground, where 40C+ is the norm. Where millions of people hustle through the world’s tenth-busiest airport on their way to spend their wealth at luxury stores while the sun beats down with a relentless burn. No wonder we didn’t want to go outside. …

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Thankful Thursday – The Ultimate Garage Sale

It’s difficult to find an audience for your online wares. When people found Lisa’s Pieces, they liked our tables, lamps and found treasures, but translating that into sales wasn’t easy. We ended up with a lot of unsold stuff simply because we couldn’t find enough of the right people.  …

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Ed Kelly standing in front of a microphone, wearing mirrored sunglasses, talking on the phone as he does one of his impressions

Master Impressionist

Thousands of broadcasters and actors in this country dream of making it in the US. Our friend Ed Kelly has been doing it for decades. The way I see it, his career is successful for three reasons.

  1. He’s versatile; from broadcasting to voice-over to acting to live stage performances including comedy, impressions and singing – he does it all.
  2. He’s mobile. He can go where the work is.
  3. He’s wickedly talented. Like, a one in ten-million kind of talent. And that might be selling him short.

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scan as you shop gizmo attached to the handle of a shopping cart

The future is always beginning now ~Mark Strand.

While I check out my items at the grocery store, I can’t help but think about the last time I went through a cashier’s lane. We exchanged the usual pleasantries. She asked how I was. I responded, fine, how are you. And then she launched into the reasons why she shouldn’t be there. It wasn’t her shift. Someone called in sick and she was summoned at the last minute. She was really tired.  …

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Hear My Voice

After more than a year away, I signed up once again to Voices.com. (I wrote about it HERE.) I was annoyed with them. My booking rates had fallen and they had doubled their escrow rates without notice. It went from 10% to 20% overnight. That’s the amount they charge a client based on the rate paid to the talent. The amount comes out of the total budget, ostensibly reducing how much the talent, like me, can charge for the job. …

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cover of the WKRP box set featuring the entire cast of the show

Thankful Thursday – Radio Days

Radio has given me a voice. It’s been loyal to me even when I wasn’t loyal to it. It’s forgiven me when I was a jerk (and there were times when I was a jerk!) and afforded me opportunities I wouldn’t have found anywhere else. Radio introduced me to some of the most wonderful people in the world, and some of the most famous. They’re not always the same thing. It legitimized me to strangers and gave me confidence until I built some of my own.  …

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Thankful Thursday – Meals on Wheels

Some of the simpler things in life aren’t so simple for many people. Having enough to eat. Being able to look after themselves. People struggle with these things every day. Last week I was asked to help deliver lunches with Meals on Wheels and saw first-hand how important their work is. I’m thankful for the experience. …

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books stacked beside wooden candlesticks, titled Mystery, Romance, Biography

Birthing Another Book

I’ve signed the contract with Hibbert & Stiles . The manuscript has been edited. My fifth book is in production to come out as both a book-book and an eBook. Be Our Guest (working title) will be spineless, not in tone but it physical nature. It’s a quick read meant for publicists, talent managers and anyone at all who has an interest in radio and in getting a guest spot on the air. …

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